Sumitomo Wiring Systems, Limited

Shinjiro Kida

Yuma Mamiya

Sho Saito

Yujiro Imai

Masami Kawamoto

Tsutomu Tanaka

Tomoki Okano

A connector is provided with a housing including a lock arm and a detector movable to a standby position and a detection position with respect to the housing. The detector includes a locking piece to be locked to the lock arm at the standby position before both housings are connected. At least one of the detector and the housing includes a locking strengthening portion for displacing the detector in a direction to increase a locking engagement of the locking piece and the lock arm in a part configured to slide in contact with the other when the detector moves from the standby position to the detection position.

Connector

It is aimed to provide a connector capable of dispersing stress during unlocking and avoiding enlargement in a connected state. A connector includes a housing body and a lock arm for locking a mating housing in a connected state. The lock arm includes a leg rising from the housing body and an arm body facing the housing body and extending to intersect the leg. The leg is inclined in a connecting direction of the mating housing with distance from the housing body. The lock arm includes an entrance space, into which a tip of the mating housing enters, in a formation range of the leg in the connecting direction and between the leg and the arm body.

Connector with lock arm having a forwardly open entrance space that receives tip of mating connector to shorten front-rear dimension after connection

It is aimed to provide a connector capable of ensuring lock reliability. A connector includes a detector allowed to move from a standby position to a detection position after both housings are connected. The detector includes a locking piece to be locked to a lock arm at the standby position before the housings are connected. The lock arm of the housing includes a releasing portion to be pressed at the time of separating the housings, a stopper contactable by the detector having reached the detection position at a position facing the releasing portion, two links linking the releasing portion and the stopper and facing each other, and an insertion hole formed inside the releasing portion, the stopper and the links, the locking piece being inserted into the insertion hole.

A male housing () includes a housing body () with a fitting space () that accommodates tabs () of male terminal fittings (). An accommodation space () is rearward of the fitting space () and accommodates a sealing plug (). An outer peripheral portion () of the male housing () defines an outer periphery of the accommodation space (). An inner surface of the outer peripheral portion () closely contacts the sealing plug (), and plate locks () project into the fitting space (). A moving plate () to be locked by the plate locks () is arranged in the fitting space (). The male housing () includes communication spaces () between the housing body () and the outer peripheral portion () and behind the plate locks (). The communication spaces () allow communication between the fitting space () and the accommodation space ().

It is aimed to mount a sealing member into a receptacle after arranging a moving plate in the receptacle. In a fitting space () of a receptacle (), plate lock portions () are provided to project, a moving plate () to be locked by the plate locks () at a protecting position is arranged, and a sealing member () is arranged closer to an opening than the plate locks (). The receptacle () is composed of a body-side receptacle () including the plate locks () and a tip-side receptacle () arranged closer to the opening of the fitting space () than the body-side receptacle () and to be coupled to the body-side receptacle (). The sealing member () is fixed by being sandwiched between the body-side receptacle () and the tip-side receptacle ().

Connector with receptacle having moving plate and sealing member mounted in the receptacle

A lock arm () has a lock () that rides on a lock projection () while connecting two housings () and locks the lock projection () when the housings () are connected. A connection detecting member () is movable in the male housing () and between an initial position and a detection position. The connection detecting member () has a resilient detecting portion () capable of contacting the lock (). First and second restricting surfaces () are formed on a facing surface () of the lock () facing the resilient detecting portion (). The first restricting surface () restricts displacement of the resilient detecting portion () in a riding direction on the lock () with respect to the lock () and the second restricting surface () restricts displacement of the resilient detecting portion () in a direction opposite to the riding direction on the lock projection ().

It is aimed to provide a connector capable of being simplified in configuration. A connector () includes a housing () configured to be fit to hold a mating housing () by a resiliently deflectable lock arm (), and a detecting member () configured such that a movement from a standby position to a detection position is restricted in a state where the housing () and the mating housing () are not properly connected and a movement to the detection position is allowed in a properly connected state of the housing () and the mating housing (). The lock arm () includes stopper () configured to stop the detecting member () in contact therewith in the properly connected state. The housing () includes a covering wall () with which the stoppers () come into contact in a deflecting direction of the lock arm ().

Connector with a housing that restricts excessive deflection of the lock arm

A housing () includes a terminal holding portion () and a fitting space () facing the front surface of the terminal holding portion (). A retainer () is mounted in a front part of the terminal holding portion (). The retainer () is movable between a partial locking position and a full locking position. A moving plate () facing the front surface of the retainer () is accommodated in the fitting space (), and the moving plate () is formed with openings () penetrating in the front-rear direction. The retainer () is formed with operated portions () facing the openings () from behind, and a tool () inserted into the opening () can contact the operated portion ().

Connector with a retainer operable by a tool

A moving plate () is movable in a fitting space () of a receptacle () between a protecting position and a retracted position. A sealing member () is closer to an opening than the moving plate () and closely contacts the inner surface of the receptacle (). The moving plate () has arms () including inward projecting locking projections (). A female housing () fits into the fitting space () of the receptacle () and includes a sealing surface () and recesses () on an outer surface. The sealing surface () contacts the inner surface of the sealing member () during connection to a male connector (). The recesses () are recessed on a more forward side than the sealing surface () in a fitting direction into the fitting space (), and locking projections () are locked to side surfaces of the recesses during separation from the male connector.

A female connector (F) includes a housing () to fit into a receptacle () of a male connector (M) and a front retainer () to be mounted to a front part of the housing (). The housing () includes a terminal accommodating portion () that accommodates female terminal fittings (). Plate-shaped butting portions () extend forward from an outer periphery of the terminal accommodating portion () and butt against a back surface of the receptacle () when the housing () is fit into the receptacle (). The front retainer () includes a cover () configured to cover a front end of the terminal accommodating portion () by being disposed along inner side surfaces of the butting portions () and intrusion preventing portions () projecting from the cover () to close both sides of clearances between the cover () and the butting portions () in a front view.

A female connector (F) includes a housing () to fit into a receptacle () of a male connector (M), and a front retainer () to mount to a front part of the housing (). The housing () includes a terminal accommodating portion () configured to accommodate female terminal fittings () and butting portions () in the form of flat plates extending forward from an outer periphery of the terminal accommodating portion () and configured to butt against a back surface of the receptaclewhen the housing () is fit into the receptacle (). The front retainer () includes a cover () configured to cover a front of the terminal accommodating portion () by being disposed along inner side surfaces of the butting portions (). A formation range of the butting portions () is smaller than that of the cover () in a length direction of the butting portions ().

A wire cover () is arranged to cover a rear surface of a housing () and includes a back plate () in a rear part. A pull-out port () for wires () is provided in an end part of the back plate () and an opening () is provided separately from the pull-out port (). A U-shaped lever () is arranged to straddle the back plate () and connects the housing () and a mating housing at a connection position by being rotated with an operating portion () gripped. The operating portion () of the lever () enters the opening () at the connection position and is arranged in contact with or in proximity to an edge of the opening ().

A wire cover () is arranged to cover a rear surface of a mat seal cover () and includes a lock () to be locked to a lock receiving portion () of a housing (). The lock receiving portion () is arranged at a position corresponding to a lever () covering an outer surface side of a peripheral wall () of an accommodating recess (). The lock () is locked to the lock receiving portion () from an inner surface side of the peripheral wall () of the accommodating recess (). The mat seal cover () has an assembling detection surface () with which the lock () moving toward the lock receiving portion () comes into contact when the mat seal cover () is in a semi-assembled state without being locked to the housing ().

A stopper () of a detector () is lockable to a lock surface () by entering a lock hole () of a lock arm () from a deflection space. A locking protrusion () of a second housing () locks to the lock surface () by entering the lock hole () from a side opposite the deflection space (). Thus, the housings () are held together and the stopper () pressed by the locking protrusion () separates from the lock surface () and the detector can move to the detection position. The locking protrusion () has a main body () wider than the lock surface () of a lock projection () and lockable to the lock surface (). A pressing protrusion () narrower than the locking main bodyprojects from the locking main body () and enters the lock hole () to press the stopper ().

A terminal fitting has a rectangular tube () with first and second side plates () extending from a receiving plate (). A supporting plate () extends from a front of the first side plate () and is connected to a resilient contact (). An outer plate () extends from a front of the second side plate () and is placed on the outer surface of the supporting plate (). A first ceiling plate () extends from a rear of the first side plate () and is at an inner side of the supporting plate (). A second ceiling plate () extends from a rear area of the second side plate (), at an inner side of the supporting plate () and is placed on the first ceiling plate (). A retainer () is formed on the rear of the outer plate ().

Growing community of inventors

Mie, Japan

Shinjiro Kida